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deeply in the ga directly at Weaver “Because if so, that could really come back to bite you in the ass”
The NIC director flushed “If I were you, I’d just keep that absurd opinion to yourself I’ve never understood why you were brought into this in the first place You’ve been out of the field for over thirty years, and quite frankly, it shows To repeat, you are ordered to keep the hell away from Fuat Turkekul Understood?”
McElroy responded “As I noted before, Director, I’ent Stone understands the situation perfectly”
McElroy looked directly at Stone and gave him a quick wink
They were dropped off at Chapman’s car As she drove Stone hos are explained now The Russians are on the prowl once oody”
“Why the gunfire?” Stone said abruptly
“What?”
Stone closed his eyes
“Tents,” he said
“Tents? What the bloody hell are you talking about? Are you planning on going ca?”
“White tents All on one side”
This sa being the origin of the shots and not the Hay-Adams Hotel But could there be another reason?
“Stone?” said Chap about?”
He didn’t answer
CHAPTER 66
THE NEXT MORNING, after receiving a phone call, Stone and Chapent Ashburn at the FBI’s mobile command unit The woman looked excited as she ushered them in
“We think we kno the tree was poisoned,” she announced as she pointed them to the coffee pot and cups set up on one table near the door
They sat with their coffees and watched as the screen came on
“What are we looking at?” asked Stone
Ashburn paused the video “This is from the DHS video taken of Lafayette Park The ti”
“What made you look at the DHS tape?” Chapman asked
“We look at everything at the FBI,” she replied sly But then she added in azip everywhere else So we looked at this and it has an angle that is really interesting” She hit the play button and the screen once more came to life
As Stone watched, it was as though he were only feet away froes were so clear, so close, every pixel vivid and stark He leaned in as the woman hobbled into view She was dressed in layers of filthy, ragged clothes, her face and hands blackened with the gri on the streets Her hair was adown past her neck
“A vagrant,” observed Chapman
“Homeless, yes,” said Ashburn “At least in appearance But watch what she does”
The woman slowly made her way across the park, even as Stone saw the unifor on her The park was a public space, and technically open to everyone But it was also across from the White House and visited by many tourists, and steps were employed to keep it safe and presentable Stone had seen the Secret Service remove other ho in appearance or too aggressive in their ly respectful and discreet He’d even seen some of the them away
This woh, didn’t see along, her left foot dragging behind It was only now that Stone could see a plastic bottle clutched in her hand She reached the
Ashburn froze the screen “See that?” She used a laser pointer to indicate the bottle of water It was tipped upside down and its cap was off In the halted video a strea out of the bottle and onto the base of the tree Ashburn played the rest of the video and Stone and Chapman watched as the entire contents of the bottle emptied out and were quickly absorbed into the mulch top around the tree
The nextthe wo her away
Stone said, “Did the cops notice a strange odor co from the bottle?”
Ashburn shook her head “Asked and answered We rounded up those uniforms yesterday They remember the woh to cover anything that was in that bottle And they just figured she accidentally poured her water out on the ground It was no big deal And when the tree died some time later, nobody connected the dots But we did soil sainal tree and actually found pieces of its bark the Park Service had kept Tests run on them confirm a poison was applied that effectively prevented the tree fro water and nutrients Death was inevitable”
Stone looked over at her “Good work, Agent Ashburn I think you hit on exactly how the tree was sabotaged”
“Still a long way fronedly